The correlation between echinoderms diversity and physicochemical parameters in marine pollution: A case study of the Persian Gulf coastline.

This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the correlation between echinoderms diversity and physicochemical parameters in the Persian Gulf coastline in Bushehr province in 4 seasons from March to December 2017. The physicochemical parameters including water temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), electrical conductivity (EC), salinity, pH and turbidity were measured at each sampling location. The results showed a significant correlation between echinoderms diversity and physicochemical parameters. The correlation coefficient of the Astropecten polyacanthus species with the parameters of temperature, DO, EC, salinity and turbidity was reported as -0.41, 0.64, -0.25, -0.44 and 0.60 respectively. This coefficient for the Ophiothrix fragilis species was reported as -0.68, 0.70, -0.21, -0.36 and -0.55 respectively. The results demonstrated that the most sensitive species were Astropecten polyacanthus and Ophiothrix fragilis respectively. The different species of echinoderms can be used as biological indicators of pollution in evaluating the physicochemical quality of marine environments.

Assessment of wetland landscape changes based on landscape metrics and trophic state index (case study: Anzali International Wetland).

Wetlands play an important role in conserving biodiversity, the hydrosphere's equilibrium, and the maintenance of daily livelihood; therefore, the trophic process hastens the succession procedure in them, resulting in structural changes in the landscape. The study aimed to monitor and investigate the impact of the trophic procedure on landscape structural changes in Anzali Wetland, specifically domains related to vegetation canopy and water bodies, over 24 years. The TSI (trophic state index) of the Anzali Wetland, a vital habitat in the south of the Caspian Sea, was estimated by using the Carlson TSI for 1994, 2002, 2014, and 2018. Based on satellite data for these years, the structural landscape changes were also measured using metrics such as the number of patches (NumP), class area (CA), mean patch size (MPS), and mean shape index (MSI) of the measured patch using in Patch Analyst. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient was then used to calculate the correlation between the two variables of trophic index modifications and landscape metrics. Results showed that the TSI of the wetland touched 59.51 in 1994 and then reached 65.10 in 2018. Its water body area, which was 5283.90 ha in 1994, decreased to 4183.92 ha in 2018, indicating the greatest decrease in the area from 2002 to 2018. In addition, the maximum area of vegetation canopy in 2018 was 11696.31 ha. The trophic exhibited a positive correlation of 0.8 with the area of the vegetation canopy and a positive correlation of 0.4 with the NumP of the vegetation canopy. It also had an inverse correlation of -0.4 with the area and NumP of the water body. Based on the study findings, changes in the trophic level of Anzali Wetland can be regarded as a direct factor influencing the vegetation canopy and water body.

Comparative analytical study of the results of environmental risk assessment of urban landfills approach: bowtie, network analysis techniques (ANP), TOPSIS (case study: Gilan Province).

Most landfill projects run in a dynamic and complex environment; therefore, uncertainty and risk are inherent. To improve the performance and reduce the damage caused by waste, risk study and its management have become necessary in implementing landfill location projects. As a result of the biodegradation of organic matter in waste, landfills produce various materials such as leachate, and gas. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct environmental risk assessments so that the destructing factors and their effects on the environment can be identified, and subsequently, control and management solutions offered. In the present study, the author has identified the most critical risks of construction phases and operation of landfills in Gilan province, using the Analytic Network Process (ANP), Delphi, and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) techniques. According to the results, the environmental sector represents the highest risk in the construction and operation phases. Therefore, solutions for reducing or eliminating adverse outcomes have been proposed according to the bowtie method. Solutions to reduce or eliminate the adverse effects of leachate leakage from the landfill floor that causes pollution and infiltration into groundwater: installation of a conventional control system. Routing of landfill gases by passing soil filters at the highest points of landfills using the bowtie method is recommended. The results showed that anthropogenic activities related to sanitary landfilling of waste have greatly affected Gilan province in recent years.

Application of geostatistical models to identify spatial distribution of groundwater quality parameters.

Groundwater quality management is a priority in arid and semi-arid zones where water is scarce. Leachate from open dumping of municipal solid wastes may threaten groundwater quality. This research aimed at assessing groundwater quality of the aquifer of Shur river basin in Tehran province, Iran. The pollution potential of leachate from a landfill, located at the center of the basin, was estimated to assess its impact on the aquifer. Samples from 38 wells and 2 leachate ponds around the landfill were analyzed for their physico-chemical parameters and heavy metals. Leachate Pollution Index (LPI) and Water Quality Index (WQI) were calculated and multivariate statistical techniques were employed through geostatistical models to predict the spatial variability of groundwater quality and assess its contamination sources. The groundwater quality map was developed by GIS Interface. LPI indicated that leachate from the closed cell (LPI = 36) was more contaminating than that of the active site (LPI = 25). Kriging and cokriging geostatistical interpolation methods were applied to groundwater quality parameters. The best interpolation model was then identified through cross-validation with RMSE and GSD criteria. Cokriging yielded more accurate results than kriging. Spatial distribution maps showed high groundwater contamination and degraded water quality mainly in the central part of the basin, where the landfill was. Also, 293.7 ha of the study area possessed poor and very poor water quality, unsuitable for drinking. This study implicated multiple approaches for groundwater quality assessment and estimated its spatial structure as an effort toward effective groundwater quality management in Shur river basin.

Application of MCAT to provide multi-objective optimization model for municipal waste management system.

Choosing an appropriate municipal waste management method is a very complicated environmental problem in cities. This research introduces an optimization model for waste management in the southwest region of Tehran province. It was developed by a metaheuristic algorithm that was used to minimize the economic and environmental costs. Incineration, composting, recycling and landfilling waste management methods were considered. Three scenarios were developed to determine the optimum allocation of waste to each method such to fulfill the objective of overall minimum of environmental burdens and costs. A multi-objective scenario selection model was implemented by the compromise programming method in MCAT software. Considering the budget limitation and available facilities on site, optimum allocations to recycling, composting, incineration and landfilling methods were obtained as 115,486, 132,094, 71,905 and 45,516 tons/year, respectively. The results of this study indicated that the metaheuristic algorithm in MCAT software was an efficient tool in decision making about waste management systems and thus, it was suggested to municipality managers and regional planning authorities.

Artificial intelligence accuracy assessment in NO2 concentration forecasting of metropolises air.

Air quality has been the main concern worldwide and Nitrous oxide (NO2) is one of the pollutants that have a significant effect on human health and environment. This study was conducted to compare the regression analysis and neural network model for predicting NO2 pollutants in the air of Tehran metropolis. Data has been collected during a year in the urban area of Tehran and was analyzed using multi-linear regression (MLR) and multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural networks. Meteorological parameters, urban traffic data, urban green space information, and time parameters are applied as input to forecast the daily concentration of NO2 in the air. The results demonstrate that artificial neural network modeling (R2 = 0.89, RMSE = 0.32) results in more accurate predictions than MLR analysis (R2 = 0.81, RMSE = 13.151). According to the result of sensitivity analysis of the model, the value of park area, the average of green space area and one-day time delay are the crucial parameters influencing NO2 concentration of air. Artificial neural network models could be a powerful, effective and suitable tool for analysis and modeling complex and non-linear relation of environmental variables such as ability in forecasting air pollution. Green spaces establishment has a significant role in NO2 reduction even more than traffic volume.

Forthcoming risk of Prosopis juliflora global invasion triggered by climate change: implications for environmental monitoring and risk assessment.

Climate is a determinant factor in species distribution and climate change will affect the species abilities to occupy geographic regions. Prosopis juliflora is one of the most problematic invasive species and its biological invasion causes various negative effects in tropical, arid, and semi-arid regions of the world. As eradication efforts subsequent to the establishment of an alien invasive species are costly and time-consuming, assessing patterns of the introduction of an invasive species to new regions is among the most cost-effective means of monitoring and management of natural ecosystems. In this study by using the concept of species distribution modeling (SDM) and maximum entropy (MaxEnt) method, the effect of climate change on the current and future distribution of P. juliflora has been assessed at a global scale. Bioclimatic variables in current condition and 2050 regarding two global circulation models (GCM) and two climate change scenarios were considered as explanatory variables. Our results showed that annual mean temperature (BIO1), annual precipitation (BIO12), and temperature mean diurnal range (BIO2) represented more than 87% of the variations in the model, and with an AUC of 0.854 and TSS of 0.51, the model showed a good predictive performance. Our results indicate that on a global scale, suitable ranges for P. juliflora increase across all the GCM and RCP scenarios. In a global scale, Mediterranean Basin, Middle East, and North America are regions with the highest risk of range expansion in the future. Regarding the negative impacts of P. juliflora on structure and function of natural habitats in the invaded areas, findings of this study could be considered as a warning appliance for the environmental monitoring of the regions highly sensitive to the global invasion of the species. We suggest that assessing impacts of climate change on the global distribution of the invasive species could be used as an efficient tool to implement broad-scale and priority-setting monitoring programs in natural ecosystems.

Forest fire risk assessment-an integrated approach based on multicriteria evaluation.

The present study deals with application of the weighted linear combination method for zoning of forest fire risk in Dohezar and Sehezar region of Mazandaran province in northern Iran. In this study, the effective criteria for fires were identified by the Delphi method, and these included ecological and socioeconomic parameters. In this regard, the first step comprised of digital layers; the required data were provided from databases, related centers, and field data collected in the region. Then, the map of criteria was digitized in a geographic information system, and all criteria and indexes were normalized by fuzzy logic. After that, the geographic information system (GIS 10.3) was integrated with the Weighted Linear Combination and the Analytical Network Process, to produce zonation of the forest fire risk map in the Dohezar and Sehezar region. In order to analyze accuracy of the evaluation, the results obtained from the study were compared to records of former fire incidents in the region. This was done using the Kappa coefficient test and a receiver operating characteristic curve. The model showing estimations for forest fire risk explained that the prepared map had accuracy of 90% determined by the Kappa coefficient test and the value of 0.924 by receiver operating characteristic. These results showed that the prepared map had high accuracy and efficacy.

Efficiency evaluation of urban development in Yazd City, Central Iran using data envelopment analysis.

Unplanned growth of cities is a matter of concern these days. Lack of attention to proper patterns of urban development has left so many harmful effects on human health and the environment. One of the most effective methods that can be used to measure the efficiency of urban development is data envelopment analysis (DEA). The present study is an attempt to evaluate the performance and efficiency of development of Yazd City using the DEA over the years 1983-2013. In this regard, the ecological factors, affecting the growth of the city of Yazd in the study period, were identified initially. The factors include elevation, slope, aspect, geology, morphology, soil, water quantity, climatic features, and land cover. Next, using variable returns to scale (BCC) based on the output-oriented approach, the efficiency of development of Yazd City was calculated by GAMS software to recognize efficient and inefficient units. Then, Anderson-Peterson (AP) ranking method was used to rank the most efficient units in the development of Yazd City over the study years. The obtained results indicated that the DMUs 2 (1984), 3 (1986), 12 (1994), 15 (1997), 21 (2004), up to 30 (2013) were efficient and introduced as units with proper performance in terms of ecological indicators affecting the urban growth. According to the Anderson-Peterson method, DMU 3 (1986) was recognized as the most efficient unit, ranked the highest (with a score of 1.20319) among the other 30 units in terms of ecological indicators affecting development of the urban growth. The research findings could clarify the strength and weak points of the ecological characteristics of the city. According to which, a comprehensive understanding of the performance of the city could be given to relevant authorities in order to amend inefficient units of urban development or direct the orientation of the city growth toward the most efficient directions.

Evaluating soil metallic pollution and consequent human health hazards in the vicinity of an industrialized zone, case study of Mubarakeh steel complex, Iran.

BACKGROUND: Being established in 1988 in the vicinity of Isfahan city, Mubarakeh Steel complex has imposed adverse environmental and health effects within the area. The study area is covered by lots of farms through which major crops like wheat and rice are provided. METHODS: Considering the imposed pollution load of the complex, the current study has monitored the concentration of metals Fe, Al, Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, Co, Mo, As in 14 soil samples within the study area. Furthermore, human health hazards of mentioned metals due to consumption of domestic rice and wheat have also been evaluated through different scenarios. In order to evaluate the mobility of metals in soil samples the sequential chemical analysis is performed. RESULTS: Regarding the accumulation of metals in loose phases the order of metals bioavailability risk level is estimated to be as follows: Co > Cd > Mo > Ba > As > Pb > Mn > Cu > V > Zn > Cr > Ni. DISCUSSION: An index approach is also considered to evaluate the severity of metal contamination. Regarding geochemical accumulation index, only cadmium is detected to be in a moderately contaminated status while other metals declare an unpolluted condition. Index of pollution pays more attention to mobility potential of metals and accordingly detects metals Co, Mn, As, Pb, Cd, Ba and Mo to be in a moderately contaminated level. On the other hand, enrichment factor declares all toxic metals except for Co, Ba and V to be enriched. CONCLUSIONS: Considering human health hazard assessment, except for Fe, Ba, Cu and Zn, all metals intakes in different scenarios are considered as hazardous while their CDI values are much more than the respective oral reference doses.

Caspian Rapid Assessment Method: a localized procedure for assessment of wetlands at southern fringe of the Caspian Sea.

Although Iran is of founders of the Ramsar Convention, there is no comprehensive information available in the country on the status of wetlands in the past or at present. There is also no specific guideline for assessing the status of wetlands in the basin of the Caspian Sea as an ecosystem with unique ecological features. The main aim of this study was to develop a new procedure called "Caspian Rapid Assessment Method" (CRAM) for assessment of wetlands at southern fringe of the Caspian Sea. To this end, 16 rapid assessment methods analyzed by US EPA in 2003 were reviewed to provide an inventory of rapid assessment indices. Excluding less important indices, the inventory was short-listed based on Delphi panelists' consensus. The CRAM was developed with 6 main criteria and 12 sub-criteria. The modified method was used to assess three important wetlands of Anzali, Boojagh and Miyankaleh at the southern border of the Caspian Sea. According to the obtained results, the highest score of 60 was assigned to the Anzali Wetland. Obtaining the scores of 56 and 47, Miyankaleh and Boojagh wetlands were ranked in the next priorities, respectively. At final stage, the accuracy of CRAM prioritization values was confirmed using the Friedman test. All of the wetlands were classified into category II, which indicates destroyed wetlands with rehabilitation potentials. In recent years, serious threats have deteriorated the wetlands from class III (normal condition) to the class II.

Source identification of perylene in surface sediments and waterbird eggs in the Anzali Wetland, Iran.

Following the marked increase of perylene concentration in southern coast of Caspian Sea, waterbird eggs were used as biomonitoring agents. Surface sediments and eggs of five bird species were collected from colonies in Anzali Wetland in the above coast for perylene analysis. The perylene concentrations in sediment and egg samples ranged within 70.6-204.4 and 25.5-43.2 ng/g dw, respectively. Diagnostic perylene ratios showed that the perylene found in all samples was of biogenic origin, possibly developing from terrestrial materials. The combination pattern of perylene was found to be similar in all samples. Conclusively, perylene observed in the area was transmitted from sediments in breeding areas into the eggs, so the eggs are biomonitoring agents and the prevalence of oxic conditions in surface sediments limits formation of perylene, reflecting perylene formation in the catchment area. We found that perylene distribution in surface sediments follows irregular patterns, representing significant effects from local inputs.

Siting MSW landfill using weighted linear combination and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) methodology in GIS environment (case study: Karaj).

Selection of landfill site is a complex process and needs many diverse criteria. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the suitability of the studied site as landfill for MSW in Karaj. Using weighted linear combination (WLC) method and spatial cluster analysis (SCA), suitable sites for allocation of landfill for a 20-year period were identified. For analyzing spatial auto-correlation of the land suitability map layer (LSML), Maron's I was used. Finally, using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the most preferred alternative for the landfill siting was identified. Main advantages of AHP are: relative ease of handling multiple criteria, easy to understand and effective handling of both qualitative and quantitative data. As a result, 6% of the study area is suitable for landfill siting and third alternative was identified as the most preferred for siting MSW landfill by AHP. The ranking of alternatives were obtained only by applying the WLC approach showed different results from the AHP. The WLC should be used only for the identification of alternatives and the AHP is used for prioritization. We suggest the employed procedure for other similar regions.